Polyhydroxyalkanoate biosynthesis in Pseudomonas pseudoalcaligenes YS1

Pseudomonas pseudoalcaligenes strain YS1 isolated from oil contaminated soil was able to produce polyhydroxybutyrate blended with medium-chain-length polyhydroxyalkanoates (mcl PHA). PHA synthesis genes were cloned from this strain. A fadB (gene for fatty acid degradation) deleted mutant Escherichia coli KM32B (fadB::Tet) was constructed to express the cloned PHA synthesis gene phaC1Pp or phaC2Pp. The fadB deleted mutant KM32B harboring phaC1Pp or phaC2Pp showed mcl PHA accumulation while the intact E. coli KM32 did not. The results demonstrated that P. pseudoalcaligenes YS1 possessed at least two PHA synthesis pathways; one of them was responsible for production of mcl PHA.